5 Time-Tested Ways to Improve Your Twitter Profile

Do you wonder how you can get more engagement on Twitter? More replies, retweets, and likes?

This is a hot topic in the private group for the Online Visibility Challenge so I look at a lot of Twitter profiles to see how they can be tweaked to get more activity. None of it is rocket science, yet I find that it’s easy to overlook the obvious, especially when you’re busy delivering your business services.

Twitter isn’t always top of mind, right!

With the permission of Gato Avocado, who has agreed to let me critique her profile, you’ll learn a few ways you can get better visibility when you optimize your Twitter profile.

Five Ways to Optimize Your Twitter Profile for Better Visibility

1. Keep your cover image up to date.

If you use a Twitter management tool like Hootsuite or Buffer, you may not spend much time on your Twitter profile. It’s easy to forget to change your cover image, especially if it’s seasonal or time-sensitive, promoting an event or program. When I see an out-of-date image, I wonder why the person is not paying attention to their marketing!

At the time of this post’s publication, it is officially Autumn in the United States, so the cover image below is perfect. But what happens on December 21?

Make a note on your calendar to update seasonal or time-sensitive Twitter cover images.

TIP: If you post time-sensitive cover images, make a note on your calendar when it’s time to change it, so you don’t forget

2. Design your cover image so important info is not covered by your profile photo.

As you can see on the GatoAvocado cover image above, the profile picture covers some of the copy.

When you create the cover image use a template (I use Canva) that will help you position your copy and images so nothing is covered or illegible. You can see that using the template shown below, you would position the text closer to the top of the image so it’s not so it’s not covered by the profile photo. The recommended image size is 1500 x 500 pixels.

Use a template to design your Twitter cover image.

TIP: After you upload your new cover image, check it on desktop, tablet and mobile phone to make sure your followers get your message.

3. Optimize your bio.

You don’t have many characters for your bio – 160 – but you can get creative if you spend a little time working on it.

Consider adding a URL in your bio (in addition to the link below your bio), hashtags and emojis. Emojis can tell a story and use only one character. Including a couple of hashtags tell your followers additional ways to find your tweets. And, adding a URL to a landing page helps you build your list and provide additional value to your followers.

Get creative with your bio. Add a URL, hashtags and emojis.

TIP: Don’t squander the URL you post under your bio. Send people to a specific page where they can opt-in for more information, or a “media room” page, a page for your book, or a program you’re promoting. Sending folks to the home page of your site may give the visitor too many options and leave the wondering what to do, or worse, clicking off your site.

4. Get the most out of your pinned tweets.

If you’re going to pin a tweet — and it’s a good idea to do so since they get more visibility and engagement — then make sure it’s optimized.

Upload an image that is created specifically for a Twitter post: 1024 x 512 pixels is optimal. If you post a post with a square or vertical image, most of it will be cut off when viewed on your profile and in the twitter stream. Look at the two examples below. The image on the first one is the cover for an ebook so it’s a vertical image. Unfortunately, it doesn’t tell the story as well as it could so there are missed opportunities for Gato Avocado.

My advice for the tweet below would be to create a horizontal image with the title of the ebook visible. In the tweet itself, I recommend using a popular hashtag like #caturday instead of a branded hashtag. For the call to action, go for something more direct: “Get your free ebook with winter cat care tips.”

Create Twitter-specific images for pinned tweets.

TIP: Like your bio, you can use emojis in your pinned tweets. This also helps tweets stand out in the twitter stream. Additionally, use popular hashtags so the tweet shows up in searches, and make sure the tweet tells the viewer exactly what they’ll get when they click the link in the tweet.

Each of these five tips is easy to implement and an easy fix for Gato Avocado. If she asks me, I’d say, it’s time to update the pinned tweet. Create a new one following the tips and track the engagement: likes, retweets, and replies. Does it get more or less that the original pinned tweet? The only way to know what works is to experiment.

The bottom line is to audit your profile every few months and see what can be updated and tweaked for better visibility.

Got a great tip for getting better visibility for your tweets? Please share it in the comments. If you test any of my tips, please let me know how they work for you. If you’d like feedback about your twitter profile and specific tips to optimize if for your business, click here to book an appointment.

About Denise Wakeman

Denise Wakeman's motto is "Just say yes!" After a life-changing trek in the Peruvian Andes, she embraced her inner Adventurer and ditched the black business suits for a knapsack and hiking boots. As long as there’s wifi, Denise is a happy glamper. She’s an early adopter and active experimenter, and loves helping authors and online entrepreneurs navigate the journey of growing their business on the Web with online marketing strategies. Connect with Denise on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.

That’s a great post, Denise.
However, I am not quite active on Twitter and I have no idea when was the last time I updated my cover photo. However, I am going to do it as soon as I can so that my profile doesn’t look outdated.
Thanks for the tips to improve my Twitter profile. 🙂

As always, you have some terrific and easy-to-implement tips here, Denise. I’m going to try to implement them all in the next week. I’ve been ignoring Twitter and didn’t even know you could pin a tweet. Thought that was just for Facebook. Also didn’t know about Hashtagify.me. Thank you so much.!

You’re welcome Elizabeth! Any time you make a change on your profile – photo or cover banner – it can attract attention. If it’s evergreen, you may want to have a few you rotate every quarter or so. Thanks for stopping by!

Peter, I don’t know if there’s any benefit to changing your profile image often, other than people following you may notice the change and take a second look at what you’re posting when they’re skimming through their twitter stream. I would say that what the profile photo looks like is more important that how often it’s changed. Here’s a good article about what makes a good Twitter profile picture.

Of course now that I re-read your comment, I’m wondering if you mean changing the cover (banner) image vs. the profile picture?